The other day in church (Hatfield Christian Church), we were drawn to an aspect of Jesus’ betrayal that I had forgotten or never realized. If you do not have time to watch the whole (excellent) sermon of Letichia Dlamini, you can watch this in the video from about the 42nd minute. Here is the quoted text:
“Then Judas, his betrayer, seeing that Jesus had been condemned, deeply regretted what he had done. He returned the thirty pieces of silver* to the chief priests and elders,c
4saying, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? Look to it yourself.”
5* Flinging the money into the temple, he departed and went off and hanged himself.
6The chief priests gathered up the money, but said, “It is not lawful to deposit this in the temple treasury, for it is the price of blood.”
9Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet,* “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of a man with a price on his head, a price set by some of the Israelites,
10d and they paid it out for the potter’s field just as the Lord had commanded me.”
(Matt. 27:3-10, compare also Zech. 11:13)
So, Judas was full of remorse and brought the money back hoping to undo what he had done. When that was refused he threw the money on the floor and left. What is so striking about this story is that the chief priests apparently considered that this money was now tainted, it was ‘blood money’. It could not be put back in the treasury of the Temple. The implication of what they did with the money is of course that they acknowledged and knew full well that Jesus was totally innocent….
Letichia makes an interesting comparison as to the purpose of the money used for the betrayal of Jesus’ life. The potter’s field had been used of course by the potter to throw away the cracked pots and pieces of broken pottery, the failures, the Humpty Dumpties, so to speak. She compared this with the broken pieces of our lives. This is exactly why Jesus came and his life and his sacrifice brings the pieces together, making us whole again, if we simply ask Him.
Say what you will about Donald Trump, but I must say that I was most impressed with Melania Trump’s song: “Thank You for the Cross”. Please take a listen. Click on the link below.
Wishing you all a peaceful Passover and a very blessed Easter!
Henry and Annette Pool
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